Daily Monitor starts justice campaign

The Daily Monitor today launches a campaign to highlight key issues in the justice sector and guide the public on access to justice.Dubbed the “Monitor Justice Campaign”, the initiative also seeks to expose bottlenecks in the delivery of justice while advocating means to address them. The campaign, according to Mr Don Wanyama, the managing editor for daily editions, was informed by research and general public demand.

“Our research has shown that a large section of the public is ignorant on basics of the law and judicial processes. People do not know how to go about things like securing a police bond or applying for bail. You have cases of people detained beyond the mandatory 48 hours and they have no clue what to do,” said Mr Wanyama.“This campaign will help educate the public on basics of access to justice. We also want the public to share their experiences with us on the same theme. We want our readers to tell us what they make of our country’s justice system but largely suggest how it can be improved,” he said.

Mr Wanyama said the drive, which will run for three months, will also see the newspaper engage key players in the justice sector to respond to some of the emerging issues while highlighting gains and challenges.

“This will be a very interactive campaign. We shall put our readers in contact with key managers in the justice sector and conduct a civilised conversation between them.”

Ms Carol Beyanga, the special projects editor, said: “We know that despite the challenges in the Judiciary, there are officers who strive to do a good job. We shall ask the public to nominate these outstanding officers whom we shall celebrate at the end of this campaign,” said Ms Beyanga, adding that articles on the campaign will run every Wednesday for the start.

The Daily Monitor has in the past conducted campaigns on exposing potholes, disused state of ambulances and abuse of government vehicles.